LHIM Weekly Bible Teaching LHIM

People are “filled” with holy spirit when they believe in Jesus Christ and confess him as their Lord. But, a believer doesn’t receive only a portion or part of the spirit or even just most of the spirit—they are filled with the spirit to the fullest measure. There is no lack or deficiency. They are filled completely with the gift of the spirit.
Acts 9:17
Paul was “filled with the spirit” when Ananias laid hands on him, and he was delivered of his temporary blindness.
Paul received the gift of the spirit here when Ananias laid hands on him, but there are other ways that the phrase “filled with the spirit” is used that involve a believer experiencing the power of the spirit in various ways.
Acts 2:4
Being filled with the spirit led to speaking in tongues on the day of Pentecost.
Acts 4:8, 31
Being filled with the spirit led to speaking boldly and proclaiming the good news.
Acts 13:9, 52
Being “filled with the spirit” led to condemning a “son of the devil” and denouncing his evil and wickedness. And being “filled with joy and the holy spirit” provided supernatural comfort and encouragement in the face of rejection.
Ephesians 5:18
Being filled with the spirit is accompanied by singing, praising, and giving thanks.The post Filled With the Spirit first appeared on Living Hope.

Acts 1:1-11   Jesus stated the mission and purpose of the church.
Matthew 5-7   Jesus elaborated on how we become his witnesses.
Matthew 5:13-16   The beatitudes prepare disciples to be salt and light.
These beatitudes are intended to yield at least three significant outcomes: 1) glory to God, 2) blessedness (holiness and happiness) for the disciple, and 3) godly influence in the world.
We are different – different from both religious and the nonreligious, from the Pharisees (Matthew 6:1-18) and the Gentiles (Matthew 6:24-34).
Matthew 5:13   Salt was used as a preservative and a disinfectant.
Prayers, visibility, and sharing are all part of being salt. We are different (but not separate) from the world.
We are not to peacefully coexist and acquiesce to the world’s insanity. Christ’s disciples follow his example. He was continually out in the community modeling holiness, confronting evil, and speaking the truth.
Salt represented qualities like loyalty, fidelity, commitment, purity, integrity, and protection. Leviticus 2:13; Numbers 18:19; Ezekiel 16:4; 2 Kings 2:20-22; and Judges 9:45
Mark 9:50; Luke 14:33-35   The effect of Christians in and on society depends on our being distinct, not identical.
Matthew 5:14-16   We are the lights of the world.
John 8:12; 9:5   Jesus called himself the light of the world and light of life. We are the lights of the world because he lives in us.
Ephesians 5:8-9; Philippians 2:15-16The post Salt and Light first appeared on Living Hope.

Looking at various incidents in the life of Christ, we can appreciate how courageously and admirably he lived. Comparing him to heroes of old or those we laud in our own time, we see that Jesus comes out as the most impressive person to ever live. Thankfully, Jesus’ righteous life and heroic death were not the end, for God raised him from the dead!
Mark 3:1-6   When he healed the man with the withered hand, Jesus courageously prioritized the hurting man over the risk to himself and the inevitable consequences.
Matthew 4:1-11   When the devil tempted Jesus, again and again he heroically resisted the challenge to prove his identity as God’s Son.
Mark 14:32-36   Before he was arrested, Jesus had to stay at Gethsemane, knowing the grisly fate that awaited him if he did not flee.
Luke 22:54-62   Peter provides a contrast to Jesus’ heroism. Rather than fessing up, Peter repeatedly denies his association with Jesus.
Mark 14:55-56, 62-64   When standing before the high priest, Jesus had to decide to own his identity as the Messiah or find a way out of his predicament. He boldly chose truth over safety.
Seeing Jesus’ heroic acts, we are helped to appreciate how valuable the salvation was that he purchased for us with his blood. His death was no quick and clean matter, but a bloody, ugly, and protracted affair. However, when God raised him from the dead, everything changed, making it possible for all who trust in him to likewise leave the grave behind.The post My Hero first appeared on Living Hope.

Jesus entered Jerusalem triumphantly, eliciting widespread joy and praise from the people. However, within a short span of time, those very praises gave way to vehement cries of “Crucify Him, Crucify Him.” What precipitated such a profound and abrupt shift in sentiment?
John 1:29 and 36   The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”
John looked at Jesus as He walked, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!”
Revelation 5:12-13   “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.”
I heard…”To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.”
1 Corinthians 5:7   For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.
John 12:1, 12   Entrance into Jerusalem was 5 days before his crucifixion.
Within a four-day swing, they went from shouts of joy with “Hosanna!” to shouts of “Crucify him!”. What happened?
13   “Hosanna” is Hebrew which literally means, “I beg you to save”. The Aramaic means “Save now; save, we pray”. “Save us now.” “Hosanna” is not a plead for eternal salvation as many assume; rather, the context indicates it is a cry to be saved from the tyrannical Roman government.
Luke 19:29-40; Mark 11:1-11
Zechariah 9:1-17   What happened? Jesus went to the temple to clean it out and not to the palace to overthrow the government.
Matthew 27:23-32
Zechariah 14:1ff
God, I offer myself to You to build with me and to do with me as You will. Relieve me of the bondage of self, that I may better do Your will. Take away my difficulties, that victory over them may bear witness to those I would help of Your power, Your love, and Your way of life. May I do Your will always! AmenThe post Triumphal Entry first appeared on Living Hope.

In Luke 16, Jesus told two parables about generosity. In the first, a dishonest manager ingratiates himself to his boss’ debtors to gain favors after he’s fired. Surprisingly, Jesus says such shrewdness is an example to his disciples. The second parable has a rich man and a poor man whose fortunes switch in the afterlife. The second parable illustrates the shrewdness of the first. By giving generously to those in need, we are investing in our future with God.
Luke 16:1-13   Jesus tells a story about a dishonest manager and then tells his disciples that this “shrewdness” is an example for them.
 
Luke 12:16-21   The parable of the rich fool illustrates the flaw in amassing wealth amid spiritual poverty.
 
Luke 19:1-10   Zacchaeus provides a sterling example of heartfelt generosity.
 
Luke 16:14-18   The Pharisees were lovers of money. They did not appreciate his instruction to use money to make friends with the poor.
 
Luke 16:19-23   We know the story is a parable because: (1) it begins the way parables begin, (2) it includes unrealistic exaggerations, and (3) it completes a massive unit of five parables.
 
Isaiah 14:9-11   The Bible repeatedly says the dead are asleep. Even Jesus himself said the real Lazarus had fallen asleep when he was dead (John 11:11). Isaiah 14 and Luke 16 tell fictional tales about the consciousness of the dead to make other points unrelated to the intermediate state.
 
Luke 16:24-31   Jesus tells a story that was floating around in their culture, but with a new twist. The living have everything we need to do what is right. Even if someone came back from the dead (which Jesus did later), many will not believe.The post Parables of Generosity first appeared on Living Hope.

A life of discipleship can be described as “a long obedience in the same direction.” While in our Christian walk, we might take wrong turns and have to course correct and get back on track moving forward toward the Lord, our desire should be to develop a pattern in our lives every day of taking one step closer to being like Christ.
John 15:1-8

Deuteronomy 5:28-33


Genesis 12:1-10


Proverbs 24:16The post A Long Obedience in the Same Direction first appeared on Living Hope.